We have completed our study of the first of the eight scenes of the book of Revelation. Chapters 2 and 3 address the church in the World. The second scene, Rev. 4:1 – 8:1 has as its theme the suffering of the church in the world. The dominant image of this scene is that of the Lamb of God opening the seven seals of the scroll of history.
Before we look at the text, we need to think together about the symbolism and meaning of biblical numbers. For the most part, the numbers we find in Revelation need to be understood symbolically, not literally. For example, in the previous study we noted how Revelation was addressed to the Seven Churches of Asia (1:7). We know historically that there were at least ten churches in existence in Asia Minor at the time of John’s writing. The number seven in this context is symbolic for all the church.
Stop and think a few moments about the most common biblical numbers. Think perhaps of the numbers one, three, seven, twelve, and forty. Jot down on a piece of paper any associations in your mind between these numbers and any biblical persons, events, or themes. What conclusions can you draw as to the symbolic meaning that may be associated with any of these numbers?
The following is a brief overview of the general symbolic meaning of the most common symbolic biblical numbers as well as a few that are less common, but bear upon our study of Revelation.
The numbers one and three are God’s numbers. The singular affirmation of the Hebrew Scriptures is that God is one (Dt 6:4). The profound revelation of the New Testament is the triune nature of the one God (Matt 28:19). Drawing on the imagery of the compass, east, west, north, and south, the number four symbolizes creation, the earth and world as God has made it. Seven symbolizes the perfection of God’s creative activity in the world. God made the world in seven days. At the end of his labor we are told that he looked upon it and indeed it was very good (Gen. 1:31). Drawing on another nuance from the creation story, the number seven can at times symbolize completion, or totality. God completed his work in seven days.
It is the number seven that gives to us the key to the meaning of the number six. If seven symbolizes perfection, then six symbolizes falling short of perfection. It is the symbolic number for sin. Here we can see the great value of understanding the symbolic meaning behind many biblical numbers. There have been many fanciful interpretations of Rev. 13:18: Here is wisdom. Let him who has understanding calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man: His number is 666. Some interpreters mistakenly apply methods of numerology to the names of historical persons seeking a literal identification of this man of wickedness.1 In contrast, I believe this number is best understood not as a numeric code but as a symbolic indicator. What does it mean that six is repeated three times? The thrice repetition is for intensification. We sing in the hymn that God is Holy, holy, holy. He is thrice holy. He is intensely holy. This intensity represented by the triplet is the meaning of the Beast’s number 666. He is the embodiment of sin. He is thrice sinful. He is intensely sinful.
There are other biblical numbers of importance. Ten symbolizes the completion of a period of time. Twelve, obviously, refers either to Israel (the Twelve Tribes) or the Church (the Twelve Apostles). Often it should be understood as God’s salvific activity in the world, symbolizing one or the other (or both) of the two major epochs of redemptive history. If we add the numbers of those two major epochs together (Twelve Tribes and Twelve Apostles) we find ourselves at the number twenty-four. In Revelation 4:4 we see the first of several references to the twenty-four elders seated upon thrones worshipping the Lamb of God. Throughout Revelation therefore the number twenty-four signifies God’s elect, his faithful followers from both the old and new covenants.
There is another symbolic number that plays a significant role in the book of Revelation: forty two (cf. Rev. 11:2 and 13:5). Note that Rev. 3:11 and 12:6 speak of a time period lasting 1,260 days, which is the equivalent of forty two months. The key to understanding the meaning of this number is found in the aptly named book of Numbers. In Numbers 33 Moses lists the forty two encampments of the people of Israel between their departure from Egypt and arrival on the plains of Moab. The number forty two (=1,260 days), therefore, is the period of time between God’s promise given and its fulfillment. It symbolizes the in between time. It is the time in which we live by faith, the time between our release from slavery and our entry into the Promised Land.
This study first appeared in Theology Matters, Vol. 6, No. 1 (Jan/Feb 2000).
Notes
- When I teach Revelation, I illustrate the imprecision of a numerological interpretation by showing that, given the right presumptions, the number of Barney the Dinosaur is 666! ↩
